OGWT = The Old Grey Whistle Test.
For me, It was seeing Pat Travers playing Makin' Magic on the show back in 1976.
His playing was just incredible, at one point he's bending one of the low strings massively across the fretboard to sound like a motor revving up. It was mind blowing, I'd never seen anything like it. His bass player, Peter 'Mars' Cowling was on a different level from his peers, in rock music, at the time. An astonishing player and of course Nicko McBrain on drums was as tight as feck.
I went out immediatly and picked up his newly released album at the time: Putting It Straight which just confirmed how damn good he was.
I've hunted for that OGWT performance for years but, sadly, have never found it.
That low string bend appears at 4:28 in the studio cut of Makin' Magic.
Awesome stuff.
Any of you old folks have a similar OTGWT moment?
(pronounced: equal-sequel) "I suffered for my art.. now it's your turn"
Comments
Alex Harvey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugoQKLbZCs8
Gary Moore - Back on the streets
Fleetwood Mac and Rhiannon - live version
Springsteen - again live - Rosalita
And probably the big one - freebird lynyrd skynyrd - the live version
A couple of years later I was watching a re-run and came across Little Feat and Rock n Roll Doctor
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=little+feat+old+grey+whistle+test&client=safari&sca_esv=e08c057435075756&channel=iphone_bm&ei=K70uZuCaI56whbIP9LST-A4&oq=little+feat+old+gr&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiEmxpdHRsZSBmZWF0IG9sZCBncioCCAAyCxAAGIAEGJECGIoFMgsQABiABBiGAxiKBTILEAAYgAQYhgMYigVIpURQAFi0NnABeAGQAQCYAYkBoAGRD6oBBDYuMTK4AQHIAQD4AQGYAhOgAqgQqAISwgIdEAAYgAQYtAIY1AMY5QIYtwMYigUY6gIYigPYAQHCAhoQABiABBi0AhjlAhi3AxiKBRjqAhiKA9gBAcICGhAuGIAEGLQCGOUCGLcDGIoFGOoCGIoD2AEBwgIWEAAYAxi0AhjlAhjqAhiMAxiPAdgBAsICCxAuGIAEGJECGIoFwgIKEAAYgAQYQxiKBcICCxAuGIAEGLEDGIMBwgIREC4YgAQYsQMY0QMYgwEYxwHCAggQABiABBixA8ICCxAAGIAEGLEDGIMBwgIaEC4YgAQYkQIYigUYlwUY3AQY3gQY4ATYAQPCAhAQABiABBixAxhDGIMBGIoFwgIXEC4YgAQYkQIYsQMY0QMYgwEYxwEYigXCAgoQLhiABBhDGIoFwgIQEC4YgAQY0QMYQxjHARiKBcICExAuGIAEGLEDGEMYgwEY1AIYigXCAggQLhiABBixA8ICGRAuGIAEGEMYigUYlwUY3AQY3gQY3wTYAQPCAhEQLhiABBiRAhixAxiDARiKBcICDhAuGIAEGJECGNQCGIoFwgIOEC4YgAQYsQMYgwEY1ALCAg4QLhiABBixAxjHARivAcICMhAuGIAEGJECGLEDGIMBGIoFGJcFGNwEGN4EGOAEGPQDGPEDGPUDGPYDGPcDGPgD2AEDwgILEC4YgAQYxwEYrwHCAgUQABiABMICBRAuGIAEwgIIEC4YgAQY1ALCAgYQABgWGB6YAwq6BgQIARgHugYGCAIQARgKugYGCAMQARgUkgcEMy4xNqAHresC&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:f0e6488a,vid:2iw35z8qp-Q,st:0
Ry Cooder’s performance of Vigilante Man also blew me away. I was never really much of a slide guitar fan but after seeing that I made an exception for Cooder (nowadays I’d add Derek Trucks).
I will follow
Sultans of swing
Focus - Hocus Pocus
The Dammed - Rip it Up
among many......
In 2002 during my divorce I bought all the DVD's and watched them repeatedly. That was a warm bath of musical joy.
I leant one to Natasha Khan, Bats for Lashes, who was our au pair. We used to hang out a lot watching them.
USA Deluxe Strat - Martyn Booth Special - Epi LP Custom
FX Plex - Cornell Romany
But my answer would be “most of it” it was the only TV programme of its time that showed rock/non-pop music.
https://open.spotify.com/album/7L1FK39PFS7yAZIiTbGY4x?si=lINg_rIIQm6o8acOsvOq6A
What probably did change my life was the OGWT itself. Having a regular TV show that broadcast live performances of a pretty wide spectrum of non-pop bands really fuelled my interest in music and my desire to play music.
I don't think that TOTP (the only similar alternative at the time) would have had that same effect.
So, Bob, it's all your fault.
THIS
10th fret and not 5 Fret